Berserk 1997 Anime Gets Steelbook Blu-Ray Release, But It Will Only Be Printed Once

Berserk: The Complete 1997 TV Series was already one of the biggest anime Blu-ray releases of the year, but now the dark fantasy adaptation of the legendary manga is getting a limited-edition steelbook release. Exclusive to Crunchyroll, Berserk’s steelbook edition releases November 30 and is available to preorder for $60 (was $80)–though you might be able to drop the price to $51 with promo code WELCOME15.

The only catch? There’s only going to be one print run available through Crunchyroll, so once it’s gone, it’s gone.

$60 (was $80)

The steelbook cover for this release is an attention-grabber, as it features the protagonist Guts in a pensive pose, all captured in a beautiful illustration that pays homage to the late Kentaro Miura’s original artwork. On the disc you’ll find the complete series of 25 episodes in high-definition with both English and Japanese dubs, as well as all the extras from previous releases.

In case this sells out, Amazon has stock of the regular Berserk Blu-ray. While you won’t get the steelbook cover with this one, it does have action-packed box art and you can save a few bucks on it as it has an MSRP of $50. You can pair that with the Berserk: The Golden Age Arc Memorial Edition Blu-ray for $54 (was $$70), a more faithful retelling of the original manga but one that was divisive with fans due to its use of CG-animated sequences with traditional 2D animation. Originally released as a trilogy of films in 2012-2013, it was recut into 13 episodes, and this Blu-ray release both English and Japanese dubs.

On the other hand, you can experience true suffering with the 2016 series of Berserk. Picking up after the Golden Age arc, the animation here isn’t up to scratch when compared to previous releases. While it did attempt to emulate Miura’s lavishly detailed art, the end result is a clunky show that’s painful to look at. Still, you’re getting 24 episodes in this release, and it does a decent job adapting the Conviction arc that introduced crucial new characters like Farnese and Serpico.

Berserk: Deluxe Edition Manga

Back to the good stuff: Berserk manga, specifically the gorgeous Deluxe Editions. The source material for the anime adaptations are still gorgeous works of art to read through, and these hardcover editions are roughly 700 pages each. They feature leatherette binding and are way bigger than the typical manga paperback, allowing you to soak up Kentaro Miura’s detailed art on each oversized page.